Let's get real about skin care

I’m fighting the good fight against all of these wrinkles that have started creeping into my 30s, but I feel like I’m losing the battle. I’m gonna talk a little about living the “natural” way v. “vanity’s” way, and a lot about my skin care routine (which is making me feel fresh, wide eyed and smooth).

In a way I’m proud of my smile lines and the few lines in my forehead for not being bigger, but in other ways I wish I still had my 20 year old self’s skin (don’t we all?). I truly think that we should always do whatever makes us feel good about waking up, looking in the mirror, and saying “I love myself”. For some people that proclamation is a lot easier than others….and heck some *days it’s just easier to say than others, but luckily there’s some magic to help us feel this way everyday and that’s why I’ve decided to share my skin care routine.

I realized getting up at 3am for more than a decade wasn’t doing me any favors in the aging department, and so I looked for answers on how I could start to rewind years of sleep loss and what it was doing to my tired skin. I was dry, splotchy and tired….and I transformed to glowing and fresh within months! I want every girl to know that it’s possible, and that we don’t have to accept our aging skin. THERE.ARE.ANSWERS.

I was also sooooo over going to my normal Derm and hearing the same thing, “let’s hack this mole, and get rid of this spot”. Leaving me with scars, and no other answers about melasma or skin discoloration other than “wear sunscreen daily” (thanks doc!). I promise the good stuff is coming. I was finally able to get pharmaceutical grade products and only the ones that were truly going to yield results (like cutting out all the BS! woohoo!). And it was all about finding the right doctor …. *and in an unsuspecting place.

So before I gush about what I’ve been doing, I want to preface with the fact that not all of my products are “organic” or “all natural”. I know, I know….I buy organic food, make sure my kids don’t have any chemicals in any of their products and work my hardest to keep our household free of all the yucky stuff (I’ve even been hunting for a good natural deodorant). I guess the vanity in me just needed whatever was going to work and took over, especially when I saw the results. Hey, if it works, it works.

So here’s what I’ve been doing for the past 4 years: (29-33 years old)

I imagine just about every girl starts to reach 30, and starts to see something a little different about her skin. Mine was a few sunspots, a few bags under the eyes or maybe even inflammation (puffy eyes). Through a few TV segments I did during my morning show I met the wonderful team at Nowak Aesthetics in Chula Vista. I don’t trust anyone with my skin and yes, I drive all the way down there to see the them, and it’s worth every minute! I’ve been doing a steady routine of Hydrafacials and PRP (aka the Vampire Facial) . Hydrafacials are noninvasive ways to clean the top layer of the skin and pours, and then they put a serum of antioxidants back into the skin. The Vampire Facial is a little more of a process (like do it on a Friday for back to work on Monday). It uses a micropen/needle and your own plasma to poke tiny holes in the surface of your skin (helping with skin turnover and collagen production), and then the doc rubs on your own plasma as a serum (hoping to Benjamin Button this sh*t). On top of that I’ve used their skin care line of moisturizers as well as Neocutis eye cream, Skinceuticals C E Ferulic, and Skin Medica’s HA5 and Lytera 2.0. The Lytera helps with skin discoloration from Melasma and the vitamin C helps brighten the skin and keep that melasma at bay. At first it was really challenging to get into the day and night routine, but after seeing how well they worked I would never forget (even after a night out. Now that’s powerful!).

So you’re asking, “where do I start?”. Don’t worry, I had that same question 4 years ago and that’s when I walked into Nowak Aesthetics and did a skin analysis where they took photos of my skin, looked for sun damage/signs of aging and started me on a regiment that I was comfortable with. I have never been happier, and they made me feel beautiful throughout the entire process.

Another thing I started about a year ago was taking biotin & collagen (skin and hair helpers). I’m swearing by both of these products because I’ve had amazing results and started seeing them within 1 to 2 months. I loved collagen so much, I made my husband start our own brand (no joke!). Here’s the stuff I’m using and the story behind it: Bubs Naturals

So I guess the moral of the story is, vanity tends to win out over our need to worry about chemicals, and that line in our forehead can’t always be treated with a little moisturizer. I’m playing the long game here, but my advice…. “do what makes you feel beautiful”. Oh, and don’t forget to smile.